ATLANTA — Elyse Spencer, a “bright star” at Spelman College who is active in her hometown community of Rochester, NY, is recovering after being shot at the Atlanta University Center on Tuesday night.
The Rochester mayor, Lovely Warren, identified Spencer in a Facebook post.
“Elyse has touched so many lives at City Hall and beyond,” Warren wrote.
She added that she spoke to Spencer’s mother, who is en route to Atlanta from New York.
“Thank God she SURVIVED surgery and is in RECOVERY,” the mayor wrote.
The family also created a GoFundMe page as they try to raise $5,000 for the "Road to Recovery."
The organizer of the page, Elantra Spencer, is Elyse's sister. She said their priority was to get to Atlanta to be with her.
"Though my family has been able to accrue the financial and emotional assistance to reach Atlanta, we are navigating unprecedented waters with minimal resources. Just a few weeks ago my mother used all of her funds to send Elyse off to college and cannot financially navigate this crisis on her own."
She said the family is anticipating what the next steps will be and that they are open to financial assistance and any guidance.
In a tweet from her personal account, Spencer thanked people for their prayers.
"Can't really reply to people. But I'm here, I'm alive," she wrote. "God got me. Y'all got me."
Warren also said Spencer was a member of the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Council in Rochester, along with a number of other community groups.
Spencer’s mother, Warren wrote, “asked me to thank everyone who supported them so they could purchase flights for the family.”
The mayor asked for additional donations to help with food and incidentals while the family is in Atlanta.
“If you can find it in your heart to send her mother anything during this time her cashapp is $elishafey.”
The shooting, which occurred at an unsanctioned block party near the Robert W. Woodruff Library, injured three other women, all students either at Spelman College or Clark Atlanta University.
Police believe the four students were caught in the crossfire at the gathering. The others have been identified as Erin Ennis, 18, of Powder Springs, Maia Williams-Mclaren, 18, of Boston, and Kia Thomas, 19.